For some, seeing the old gym demolished has been painful. Some are waxing sentimental about their time spent at the old Newton High School and sharing memories of their time there on a Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/groups/358858230385/.

Others, however are celebrating the project that will repurpose those existing buildings that can be saved and create new spaces for the Newton County Civic Center.

Buncie Lanners, Executive Director of the Arts Association of Newton County, is thrilled by the progress being made on the project. A graduate of the old high school herself, she does sympathize with those saddened by the demolition.

“We’re very invested in the school,” she said. “I understand when people say they don’t want to see their school go down; but it was going to go down, anyway. Sometimes it costs more to keep something standing rather than knock it down.

“So much of [the old high school] was unsalvageable,” she said. “We’re repurposing parts of the building that can be used, but unfortunately parts could not be salvageable.”

A collaboration of the Newton County School System, Newton County and the Arts Association Newton County, the project uses a renovated Porter Hall for the civic center and the two high school wings built in 1984 to house the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) classrooms. The old gym is being demolished to make way for additional parking, and an expansion between the auditorium and the Newton County Career Academy will house dressing rooms and costume and set shops.

“It’s exciting to see what our county commissioners, the school system and the Career Academy staff have been able to do together,” she said, adding that she had toured the site on Wednesday and was impressed at how much had been accomplished.

“Today, I was blown away. It’s amazing how fast it’s going. [The Civic Center] is really beginning to take shape,” she said. “When I look at what’s going in, I say look what we’re creating is going to do for our community and our kids. “

According to Tom Garrett, Director of Facilities for NCSS, the project is on budget. “The old school is being removed, a portion of which will be replaced with additional parking.

“The internal demolition for the renovation is almost complete,” he said, “the exterior demolition is underway and will be complete within a couple of weeks.”

Among the needed renovations to the auditorium, which was built in 1984, would be a new sound system, new lights, new seats and an extension for dressing areas. Currently classrooms are being used as dressing rooms during productions.

One of the upgrades to the auditorium will be the acoustics, Lanners said. “We’ve had an acoustician come in and consult on all types of sound and how to maximize sound in a space. Drama uses different acoustics then music.
“It’s fascinating to see that happen,” she said. “They are going to put in floating acoustical clouds. different acoustics then music. It’s fascinating to see it happen.”

Acoustical clouds are curved or flat panels that reduce ambient noise in a space and elongated sound waves, maximizing sound in the space.

“It’s really exciting that we’re creating a space that had certainly seen its better years,” Lanners said. “We are repurposing it and turning it into something that will be truly special for this community.”

Landscaping and parking spaces will be installed by the school system when the demolition is complete. The budget for the entire project is $5 million, which will come from the 2005 Special Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) funds.

The Carroll Daniel Construction company told the Board of Education in March that the project was on schedule, with 4 percent of it complete. The projected timeline is August 2015, when the design and contracting phase began, to December 2016, and includes the interior renovations to the auditorium, the expansion, demolition and creation of a parking lot.

If all goes as planned – and the project is on schedule – the Christmas in Covington chorale and the Nutcracker ballet annual performances will both be performed in the new county civic center.